Sound Off for Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2013

On GM: New car sales have gone up over 17 percent this year, and still GM hasn't repaid the $30 million they have owed the taxpayers for years.

On Paul Ryan: Janesville's Paul Ryan supports a plan to cut $40 billion in food stamps. I would like to invite him down to ECHO in his very own hometown and look the poor in the eye and tell them they are living too high on the hog.

On Syria: Eighty percent of the American people say don't attack Syria; 20 percent of the American people say attack Syria and remove Assad. Then you have the president saying we need to fire a shot across the bow. What exactly does he think that is going to accomplish?

-- What end is there for the United States to get involved with Syria? Are we going to change anything? What is there to win? Innocent people will be hurt. Let the Syrians take out their own leader. Have we not learned our lesson after Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.?

-- We're talking about inhumane chemical warfare. That means killing children and others. Nerve agents are painful and lethal. I'm shocked at the United Nations. If we have a conscience, we need to take action. Otherwise, they will do it again and maybe sneak some into our country and our schools and subways.

On housing: Is it my imagination or are there more empty homes than ever in this city? It's a sad-looking town with all the empty houses with furniture for the junk man to pick up. Lots of empty buildings, no jobs, pretty sad.

On Milton busing: In regard to the child that got on the wrong bus twice in Milton, if the supervisor was doing her job, she would have noticed that the girl's number was missing from her backpack. I hope the parents filed a complaint.

On highways: It's a good thing they got Highway 26 done because we've had a lot of traffic jams on that thing in the last eight years. I can't even think of one. How many times has the Interstate been backed up this year, 10 times? Why didn't we fix the Interstate first, then do Highway 26.

On lawsuits: Now that the NFL has settled a lawsuit for concussions, how about a lawsuit for our veterans who have post-traumatic stress, or weren't they employed by the government?

On Badger football: I need to congratulate Barry Alvarez for producing another fine opponent for the Bucky Badger fans to get all excited about. I can't believe how excited they get about beating an under matched team like that. I would rather ask for a ticket refund than be exposed to such a game as that.

On China initiative: I believe that Superintendent Schulte should be staying in Janesville; the people in Janesville are paying her salary. She doesn't need to run to China. She needs to take care of the children in the school district and earn her money here.

-- I think they need to give Schulte a one-way ticket. We need somebody to teach our children here, not in China.

On Obamacare: In Sunday's Sound Off, a caller commented on how politicians should follow the will of the American people and not attack Syria. I agree, but the same should apply to Obamacare. The American people re-elected Obama and his policies, so wake up Republicans and get in line with your constituents. The Obamacare debate is over. Obama won.

On Muslim: Why is it front-page news that a Lutheran went to college and converted to Islam? Hopefully, while in the Middle East, he can exercise his freedom of speech to address the daily bombing, persecution of Christians, gassings and subjugation of women.

On Madison: If you look up “ironic” in the dictionary, there's a picture of Madison Mayor Paul Soglin admitting he has to seek concessions from employee unions in order to close a $5 million hole in his budget. These contracts were rammed through at light speed while Act 10 negotiations were being delayed by Democrat senators hiding in Illinois. Perhaps Soglin is beginning to realize that his job is to serve the people of Madison, not the union.

On Sen. Cullen: Is it true that Tim Cullen's retirement party is going to be held in a phone booth at the Clock Tower Inn? Just wondering.